Thursday, October 21, 2010

Wallking with Positive Nouns!

This is the first time I have posted words from another author, but I ran across this article on my friend, Kim's, blog, and the words hit their mark with me. I wanted to share them with you. Also, I would love for you to visit Kim at her place A Creative Spirit. She is a great gal, so full of happiness, but she could use some good bloggy vibes and friends as she copes with the precarious health of her parents.

This article comes from a blog called Sparkspace , and I most related with creating a positive space to work and live. All of us can find something to take away from these word, so I leave them to you:

Would you like more positivity in your life?One of the most powerful concepts we share in our Creating A Positive Charge Workshop is tosurround yourself with positive nouns.You remember what a noun is, right? A noun is a person, place, thing or idea. Don't worry, we're not covering conjunctions or dangling participles in this article. The last thing I want to do is cause a painful English class flashback.Nouns are the "stuff" we surround ourselves with every day: the people we encounter; the places we work, live, and visit; the "things" we use; the ideas we're exposed to.One of the best ways to create and maintain a positive mental state is to eliminate the negative nouns in our lives and replace them with positive ones.Unfortunately, we allow ourselves to be surrounded by WAY too many negative nouns. You're probably already thinking about the negative people you work with. If any of them are sitting near you, don't look up and make eye contact or they'll know you're reading an article about them. Keep your eyes on the page. It's for your own safety.Here's a little quiz to take. It's easy. I even gave you the answers.Q. How many people do you deal with each day that drain your energy, patience, and positive spirit?A. Too many.Q. When was the last time you found yourself in a physical space that inspired and energized you?A. Too long ago.Q. How many truly positive messages do you receive via TV, movies, newspapers, magazines, and Facebook?A. Not nearly enough.To demonstrate how many negative messages we receive, pick up a copy of the local paper, USA Today, or The Wall Street Journal. Count up the number of items on the front page that contain some sort of negative message. I do this as a demonstration in my workshops. I have consistently found that 65-75% of the messages on the front page of the paper are negative, and once in awhile it spikes to 85% (that's usually The Wall Street Journal, by the way).So, if I'm trying to be a positive force in my company, my family, and my community, why would I allow myself to be surrounded by so many negative nouns? That does nothing to help me (or those I'm trying to serve). If I was fighting cancer, you better believe I wouldn't pick a medicine that only provided 25% of what I really needed to create a positive outcome.You can change the ratio of negative to positive nouns any time you want. All you have to do is dump the negative and seek out the positive. The word "seek" implies there might be work involved. It's not that hard, but it does take some effort.Stop reading the newspaper every day. Ignore those RIDICULOUS tabloid magazines at the checkout counter. Be careful what kinds of books you read, TV shows you watch, and movies you go to. Don't worry -- if the world really ends in 2012 one of your negative friends who still reads the newspaper will let you know about it.Find a place that inspires and energizes you andgo there often. Like, today. Is it the gym? A church? The library? A certain inspirational business retreat center in Columbus' Arena District? (Yes, a shameless plug. Sue me). Hiking through nature almost always does the trick for me. It's hard not to be inspired by the Master's work, especially when the leaves are exploding in color like they are right now.And finally, remember those negative people who bring you down?Dump them. Find new friends. You owe negative people NOTHING. True, some people you can't avoid (like certain co-workers or family members), but youcanlimit your exposure to them. It might take some planning and practice, but it's worth the effort. You don't have to be rude or mean, you just have tochose to limit your exposure to negative people. Always remember that what you focus on expands.If you keep surrounding yourself with negative nouns, you'll have a lot more negativity in your life than you desire. But, if you choose to surround yourself with positive nouns, your world will become an exponentially more positive place. And imagine what you will accomplish in a world like that!Oh, one more thing. Take a good look at yourself andmake sure you're a positive nounfor those around you, too.